The That Western Life podcast is hosted by Katie Schrock, Rachel Owens-Sarno, Katie Surritt, and Joe Harper! Join us weekly for great conversations about rodeo and the western lifestyle.
Season 6 is gearing up for the Top 5 Rodeo Sports Podcast That Western Life with co-hosts Katie Schrock, Rachel Owens-Sarno, Katie Surritt, and Joe Harper. Join us as we recap the 2023 Wrangler National Finals Rodeo & Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association’s Annual Convention and dive into our predictions for 2024 with a preview of the 2024 podcasting season.
Read MoreKiah Twisselman Burchett is a sixth-generation rancher from San Luis Obispo, California, whose love for the beef industry took her to a job for the Beef! It’s What For Dinner team at the Kentucky Beef Council. There she was trained in media and the beef industry on a national and professional level - something that would come in handy when her entire life changed with just the shift of her mindset. From PEOPLE Magazine to The Kelly Clarkson Show to being the upcoming Keynote at the COWGIRL Magazine 30 Under 30’s first ever Girl Talk breakout session, Kiah is a positive light in the western industry helping people break toxic fad trends and changing their lives for the longterm and the better!
Read MoreIf you know us, you know that we are obsessed with anything related to stats with rodeo and, thanks to the Facebook algorithm, we found a like-minded individual in Amber Case during the 2022 National Finals Rodeo. We dive into the statistics of racehorses barrel racing as a second career, the best stock in the barrel pens today, and some of the work it takes to be a producer.
Read MoreJona Robles is the face, the voice, and the brains behind JR Horse Training based out of Sherwood, Oregon. He specializes in the implementation of natural horsemanship in his horse training to cater a program to horses of a variety of disciplines. While we have a lot to talk about in regards to reining horses, colt starting and eventing horses - there is a lot that JR has done over the years in horse training.
Read MoreIt’s been a wild 2022 and we are so grateful for everyone that has joined our show as a guest, field reporter or an avid listener! Thank you to all of you and we look forward to an exciting 2023! We break down the 2022 NFR, the year end results, and some of our thoughts on predictions for rodeo and world title winners for 2023!
Read MoreThe Justin Cowboy Crisis Fund will always hold a special place in our hearts for its impact on the professionalism of pro rodeo, as well as the work Justin Boots does to take care of our contestants and athletes not only in the arena, but outside of the arena walls as well. We dive into the history of the JCCF, the brand that is Justin Boots, and the founding people of the Justin Sports Medicine Team. Additionally, we chat with Cowboy Romance Author Shanna Hatfield regarding her writing career and how a percentage of her book sale proceeds every October 1st through Christmas Eve goes directly to the JCCF.
Read MoreKim Rounds first came on our show at the start of Season 3 and is back for a second round as a part of our collaboration with COWGIRL Magazine's 30 Under 30 Program. A specialty beef programs manager and all beef exports listed under her job title at 5 Rivers Cattle Feeders, Kim's also in charge of social media and other outreach such as facility tours. As of late, Kim's hard work has been recognized in a multitude of 30 Under 30 and 40 Under 40 awards, making her the unplanned face of the ranching (and female ranching) industry throughout Colorado and America.
Kim's background with the western lifestyle has stemmed from a lifelong love of cattle and horses. A show jumper turned reined cowhorse competitor, Kim's need for speed and adrenaline has created a newfound passion in the world of cowhorse where her and her great mare, Stevie, have won countless awards. As a part of that passion, however, Kim has continued to learn more and more about the cowhorse industry - even creating an Excel spreadsheet on cowhorse studs that would rival co-host Katie Schrock's National Finals Rodeo spreadsheets!
Join for the fun, horse marketing and cowhorse industry information, and all things cattle industry with your That Western Life podcast co-hosts, Katie Schrock and Rachel Owens-Sarno, for the kick off of Season 4!
Read more on the blog at https://www.ThatWesternLife.com/podcast/episode104.
Learn more about the COWGIRL Magazine 30 Under 30 and all of their efforts to promote women in the western industry here --> https://www.COWGIRLMagazine.com.
Read MoreJanzen Tew is a self-taught photographer that has grown her marketing and digital marketing agency in the niche world of western fashion over the past half decade. As a result, she was named to the COWGIRL Magazine 30 Under 30’s inaugural class in 2020. But her story doesn’t stop there, she’s continued to be a mover and shaker in the western fashion industry and her company, Denim & Velvet Marketing, has taken over the management of the official shopping guide of the National Finals Rodeo - Western Runway. As a part of that management, they’ll be expanding to media outlets in 2022, showcasing western fashion on top news outlets at rodeos all around the country.
Read MoreFull of energy, spunk and a love for meeting people and telling stories of the western lifestyle, Erin DeLong is the marketing and public relations director for Rocky Brand’s western division, Durango Boots. The newly named official boot of the National Finals Rodeo, Erin talks about the Durango Rodeo Team and how it’s selected, their partnerships with the American Rodeo and the COWGIRL 30 Under 30 program.
Read MoreKarlee Peterson is the dynamic mastermind producer behind The Cowboy Channel - a streaming network dedicated to all things rodeo and the western life. But if you had asked Karlee before college what her career would be, she would have told you “International Lawyer.” Great mentors gave her the opportunity to dabble in television production and she was hooked; combine that with her South Dakotan roots of rodeo, training horses with her family and the western lifestyle, and it created the perfect dream career for her!
Read MoreShaina Zollman grew up in the cowboy town of Pendleton, Oregon, and went on to follow in her families legacy of Pendleton Round-Up participation and volunteerism when she was a part of their court as first a princess and then the queen. After her years as a titleholder, she got involved with cow horses and, after graduating from Oregon State University with a Wildlife Biology degree, she found her passion of education and content creation with her boyfriend, Dusty. Together they created HorsePro.TV where Shaina took Dusty’s idea and learned all the technology needed to make it a reality. She does all of the content strategy, video creation, and membership outreach and management for their online database of fundamental equine training programs.
Read MoreKaitlin Gustave discovered her love of team roping at the age of sixteen and never looked back. The young roper, an editor in her own right, has competed at the college level in team roping and breakaway roping. After an internship with what was then known as Spin to Win Rodeo and is now known as The Team Roping Journal, she took a job with them and has never looked back!
A COWGIRL Magazine 30 Under 30 recipient, we are so excited to dive into who she thinks are the up and comers in the roping industry and who to watch for at the National Finals Rodeo!
Read MoreShaley Ham is a full time tax accountant from Washington, with a love for the western lifestyle who, after getting noticed for her western fashion posts, began to build her own western fashion marketing business. While most people recognize her by her Instagram and blog name, West Desperado, Shaley Ham is the curator, creative, oftentimes photographer, and more behind the brand. A member of the 2020, inaugural class of COWGIRL Magazine’s 30 Under 30 Class, we are so excited to bring you this episode from COWGIRL Magazine!
Read MoreOwner of McFarland Productions, Natalie McFarland was named to COWGIRL Magazine's inaugural 30 Under 30 class in 2020. A passionate advocate for all things agriculture, her company may be best known for it's video work but her entire team works hard to provide a one-stop shop for all things digital in the western world!
Read MoreToday’s guest is someone that we have been eagerly awaiting the opportunity to introduce to our listeners and that is someone who is making one of the biggest differences for women in the western industries. If you have listened to any of our episodes or read our blogs, you have heard us talk about the COWGIRL Magazine 30 Under 30 program and today the CEO and Editor of COWGIRL Magazine’s Ken Amorosano is on the show today. We dive into all things COWGIRL Magazine and Ken’s career trajectory to owning the magazine, as well as the COWGIRL 30 Under 30 program and application process, and their 2021 model search!
Read MoreThey ride horses, rope calves, buck broncos, ride and fight bulls, and even wrestle steers. They are Black cowboys, and the legacies of their pursuits intersect with those of America's struggle for racial equality, human rights, and social justice.
Keith Ryan Cartwright brings to life the stories of such pioneers as Cleo Hearn, the first Black cowboy to professionally rope in the Rodeo Cowboy Association; Myrtis Dightman, who became known as the Jackie Robinson of Rodeo after being the first Black cowboy to qualify for the National Finals Rodeo; and Tex Williams, the first Black cowboy to become a state high school rodeo champion in Texas.
Black Cowboys of Rodeo: Unsung Heroes from Harlem to Hollywood and the American West author Keith Ryan Cartwright talks about his unlikely career in the PBR from the world of entertainment to the production of this pivotal book. Black Cowboys of Rodeo is a collection of one hundred years of stories, told by these revolutionary Black pioneers themselves and set against the backdrop of Reconstruction, Jim Crow, segregation, the civil rights movement, and eventually the integration of a racially divided country.
Adelle Stewart's story starts with a passion for horses and, despite the many trials and tribulations along the way, continues in the horse world. As the executive director for a Canadian non-profit centered around mental health in agriculture, Adelle's passion for helping people and animals also includes her luxury boutique boarding facility Prime Equine. A cowboy mounted shooter, a lover of good riding ponies, and a wilderness survivial expert, Adelle shares her journey with us, as well as her pivotal 2020 of handling cancer and a pandemic alone.
Read MoreCarly Twisselman is a native to the central coast of California, where she grew up on her family's generational cattle ranch. Always being a part of rodeo through the roping scene, she took a chance to independently rodeo-ing for the UCLA Bruins while getting a degree in mass communications and aspirations of being an actress!
It wasn't until she decided to step into the professional world of rodeo that she decided to upgrade from running her roper horses in barrel racing to a bred-to-run quarter horse cross as barrel racing was her only option as a woman in prorodeo. Her current mount, Charm, is a half-sister to Hailey Kinsel's great mare Sister, and is setting the way for Carly's success in the rodeo arena. But potentially even more exciting is the addition of breakaway roping to prorodeo's across the country!
Carly dives deep into ranching, rodeo, her breeding program and bloodlines, being a television host for RIDE-TV and her involvement in the hunting industry and politics.
Read MoreWe’ve mentioned Janie Johnson on all three seasons of the That Western Life, which may come across a bit creepy, but just goes to show how big of a fans we all are from the podcast! Janie is fresh off of RFD-TV’s The American, a crazy week full of tailgate parties, performances and exciting story lines, so we were excited to chat with her more about all things pro rodeo!
Read MoreA full time pharmacist, cattle rancher, and family-man, Jason Medows is also the host of the Ag State of Mind podcast - a show dedicated to the mental, physical and spiritual health of those in the western lifestyle. Jason joins us on the show to talk about his show, his career, and more!
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